Plastic Pollution

Summary

Dr. Shandur's lecture at North Bengal University delves into the pressing issue of plastic pollution, outlining the history, types, and environmental impacts of plastics. It highlights the persistence of plastics in ecosystems, their contribution to groundwater and land pollution, and the dangers of improper waste management. The talk emphasizes the importance of reducing, reusing, and recycling to mitigate the harmful effects of plastic waste, suggesting practical steps for individuals and society to combat this global challenge.

Takeaways

• 📚 Dr. Shandur from the Department of Botany, University of North Bengal, is delivering a lecture on plastic pollution as part of the S2 paper of Environmental Studies.
• 🚀 The lecture outlines the introduction to plastics, types, uses, effects on the environment, and management strategies for plastic waste.
• 🔍 Plastics are defined as synthetic or natural organic materials that can be shaped and hardened, often used to replace traditional materials like glass, wood, and metals.
• 🕰 The history of plastics dates back to 1846 with the discovery of nitrocellulose, and various types of plastics were developed throughout the 20th century.
• 🔢 The Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI) introduced a resin identification code in 1988, categorizing seven types of plastics, each with specific uses and recycling numbers.
• ♻️ Different types of plastics decompose at varying rates, with some like PVC not decomposing at all, while others like HDPE can take around 100 years.
• 🌍 Plastic pollution is a global issue affecting all ecosystems, including terrestrial, aquatic, and marine environments, and is highly toxic to all forms of life.
• 🌿 The effects of plastic pollution include groundwater contamination, land pollution, and air pollution from burning plastics, which releases toxic gases.
• 🔄 Plastic recycling involves collection, sorting, shredding, cleaning, melting, and pelletizing waste plastic to be reused, a process that helps manage plastic waste.
• 🏺 Conventional methods of plastic waste management include recycling, landfilling, and incineration, each with its own set of environmental concerns.
• 🛍️ Reducing the use of single-use plastics, such as bags, straws, and utensils, is a key strategy for individuals to help manage plastic waste.
• 🌱 The three R's of waste management—Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle—are emphasized as collective actions to mitigate plastic pollution.

Q & A

What is the definition of plastic according to the lecture?

Plastic is defined as any group of synthetic or natural organic materials that can be shaped when soft and then hardened. It includes different types of resins, resinoids, and polymeric materials, such as cellulose derivatives, proteins, and materials designed to replace traditional materials like glass, wood, and metals.

What are the main uses of plastics?

Plastics are used for various purposes such as construction, decoration, making articles like coatings, filaments, and weaving materials.

When was the origin of plastic traced back to?

The origin of plastic can be traced back to the year 1846 in Europe, where Charles Goodyear accidentally discovered the resin nitrocellulose.

What is the significance of the resin identification code developed by the Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI)?

The resin identification code, developed by SPI, is a system that categorizes plastics based on the types of polymers or resins used in their production. It helps in identifying seven categories of plastics, each with a specific number (1 to 7) and applications.

What are the seven categories of plastics recognized by the resin identification code?

The seven categories include PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate), HDPE (High-Density Polyethylene), PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride), LDPE (Low-Density Polyethylene), PP (Polypropylene), PS (Polystyrene), and other mixed plastics.

How does plastic pollution affect the environment?

Plastic pollution affects the environment by causing groundwater pollution, land pollution, and air pollution due to burning. It also disrupts ecosystems and can lead to the biomagnification of toxins in the food chain, posing a serious threat to various organisms.

What are the main challenges in managing plastic waste?

The main challenges in managing plastic waste include the non-degradable nature of plastics, the accumulation of waste in landfills, the release of toxic gases during incineration, and the persistence of plastics in the environment for a long time.

What is the process of plastic recycling?

The process of plastic recycling involves the collection of plastic, sorting of different types of plastics, shredding, cleaning, melting, and finally making pellets for reuse.

Why is it important to reduce the use of single-use plastics?

Reducing the use of single-use plastics is important because they are used only once and contribute significantly to plastic waste. They can be replaced with reusable alternatives, reducing the overall environmental impact.

What are some alternative methods for managing plastic waste?

Alternative methods for managing plastic waste include introducing a container deposit system, banning single-use plastic bags, removing microbeads from personal care and laundry products, and ensuring plastic producers and recyclers capture all plastic waste.

What is the impact of plastic pollution on marine life?

Plastic pollution has a significant impact on marine life as it accumulates in oceans, affecting phytoplankton, primary consumers, secondary consumers, and ultimately humans. Improperly discarded plastic litter contributes to this pollution, disrupting the food chain and causing harm to marine species.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Introduction to Plastic Pollution and Lecture Outline

Dr. Shandur from the Department of Botany at the University of North Bengal introduces a lecture on plastic pollution, part of the S2 paper of Environmental Studies. The lecture aims to outline the types of plastics, their uses, the environmental impact of plastic pollution, and management strategies. Plastics are defined as synthetic or natural materials that can be molded and hardened, often replacing traditional materials like glass, wood, and metals. The history of plastics is traced back to 1846, with significant developments in the 20th century, leading to the creation of the Resin Identification Code in 1988 to categorize different types of plastics based on their polymers or resins.

05:00

🌿 Environmental Impact and Decomposition of Plastics

This paragraph delves into the environmental effects of plastic pollution, highlighting the varying decomposition times of different plastic types. For instance, PVC takes an indefinite amount of time to decompose, while LDPE can take up to 1,000 years. The paragraph emphasizes the persistence of plastics in the environment, their resistance to natural degradation processes, and their accumulation as a result of their widespread use. Plastic pollution affects ecosystems, including groundwater and land, and poses a significant hazard due to the release of toxic gases when burned, contributing to air pollution and the overall degradation of the environment.

10:00

🌍 The Consequences of Plastic Pollution on Ecosystems and Food Chains

The third paragraph discusses the impact of plastic pollution on the food chain, from phytoplankton to humans, and the biomagnification of toxins in higher consumers. It outlines the management of plastic waste, including recycling, landfilling, and incineration, each with its own set of challenges and environmental implications. The paragraph calls for individual and collective action to reduce single-use plastics and to embrace the principles of reduce, reuse, and recycle. It also presents innovative uses of plastic waste, such as constructing roads, as a means to mitigate the environmental harm caused by plastic pollution.

15:02

🚯 Conclusion and Call to Action on Plastic Pollution Management

In conclusion, the lecture emphasizes the urgency of addressing plastic pollution, with statistics highlighting the millions of plastic items and tons of plastic waste entering the environment annually. It stresses the importance of not letting the world be overrun by plastic and suggests steps for managing plastic waste, such as implementing a container deposit system, banning single-use plastic bags, and ensuring producers and recyclers capture all plastic waste. The lecture ends with a call to action for everyone to contribute to the reduction of plastic pollution.

Keywords

💡Plastic Pollution

Plastic pollution refers to the accumulation of plastic products in the environment, causing harm to ecosystems and wildlife. It is the central theme of the video, as it discusses the negative impacts of plastic waste on the environment and potential solutions. The script mentions how plastics persist in the environment for long periods, causing issues such as groundwater pollution and affecting marine life.

💡Plastics

Plastics are synthetic or natural organic materials that can be molded into shape and then hardened. They are the main subject of the video, which explores their uses, types, and the problems they cause when not properly managed. The script provides a historical overview of plastic development and their widespread use in modern society.

💡Resin Identification Code (RIC)

The Resin Identification Code is a system developed by the Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI) to categorize different types of plastics based on the polymers or resins used in their production. The script explains that there are seven categories identified by numbers 1 through 7, each with specific uses and applications.

💡Decomposition

Decomposition, in the context of the video, refers to the breakdown of plastic materials over time in the environment. The script highlights the varying rates at which different types of plastics decompose, with some taking hundreds or even thousands of years, emphasizing the persistence of plastic pollution.

💡Non-Degradable

Non-degradable materials are those that do not break down naturally over time. The video points out that plastics are non-degradable due to their durable polymeric properties, which makes them a significant environmental concern as they accumulate in the environment without decomposing.

💡Recycling

Recycling is the process of recovering and reprocessing waste materials into new products. The script describes the steps involved in plastic recycling, such as collection, sorting, shredding, and pelletizing, as a method to manage plastic waste and reduce environmental impact.

💡Landfilling

Landfilling is a waste management method where waste is disposed of in a landfill. The video discusses landfilling as a conventional method for managing plastic waste, but also points out its disadvantages, such as the scarcity of space and the long-term accumulation of non-degradable plastics.

💡Incineration

Incineration is the process of burning waste at high temperatures to reduce its volume and recover energy. The script mentions incineration as another conventional waste management method for plastics, but also notes the release of hazardous substances into the environment as a major concern.

💡Single-Use Plastics

Single-use plastics are plastic items designed to be used once before they are discarded. The video emphasizes reducing the use of single-use plastics as a strategy for managing plastic waste, providing examples such as plastic bags, straws, and cutlery, and suggesting alternatives to these items.

💡Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

The 'Reduce, Reuse, Recycle' mantra is a widely promoted approach to waste management. The video encourages viewers to adopt these practices to manage plastic waste effectively, by reducing plastic consumption, reusing plastic items, and recycling plastics to prevent environmental harm.

💡Microplastics

Microplastics are tiny plastic particles that are less than 5mm in size. The script explains that these particles can be released into the environment from the breakdown of larger plastic items, contributing to pollution and posing a threat to marine life and potentially human health.

Highlights

Dr. Shandur introduces the lecture on plastic pollution, its effects on the environment, and management strategies.

Plastic is defined as a group of synthetic or natural materials that can be shaped and hardened, often replacing traditional materials like glass, wood, and metals.

The history of plastics dates back to 1846, with significant developments in various types of plastics throughout the 20th century.

SPI's resin identification code categorizes plastics into seven types, each with specific uses and decomposition times.

Plastic pollution is highly toxic and affects all ecosystems, including plants, animals, and insects.

Groundwater pollution is a major concern due to plastic waste accumulation in aquatic environments.

Plastic waste is a significant contributor to land pollution, with 46% of plastic waste being landfilled.

Burning plastics leads to air pollution due to the release of toxic gases and chemicals.

Plastic pollution disrupts the food chain, affecting producers, consumers, and ultimately humans.

Plastic recycling involves collection, sorting, shredding, cleaning, melting, and pelletizing to produce new products.

Landfilling plastic waste has disadvantages, including limited space and environmental impact from non-degradation.

Incineration can be used to manage plastic waste, but it raises concerns about hazardous substance release.

Reducing single-use plastics is a practical step towards managing plastic waste.

Alternatives to single-use plastics, such as reusable bags and steel cutlery, can help mitigate environmental impact.

The 3Rs of waste management—Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle—are emphasized as key strategies to combat plastic pollution.

Innovative uses of plastic waste, such as in road construction, demonstrate potential for repurposing materials.

Statistics highlight the scale of plastic pollution, with millions of plastic bottles and packaging items released into the environment annually.

Microplastics from a single bottle can number in the thousands, emphasizing the need for plastic management.

The lecture concludes with a call to action to rise above plastic pollution and manage it responsibly.

Transcripts

[Music]

[Music]

hello dear students I Dr shandur from

the Department of botney University of

North

Bengal today I will be delivering a

lecture on the topic plastic

pollution as a part of the S2 paper of

Environmental

Studies first of all I would like to

focus upon the outline of this lecture

so this lecture will briefly introduce

to the Plastics the types of plastics

and their

uses the effect of plastic pollution on

the

environment and most importantly on the

management of plastic

fa so first of all what is a

plastic so we can Define plastic as any

group of synthetic or natural organic

materials that may be shaped when soft

and then

hardened it can include different type

of resins resinoids and polymeric

materials including the cellulose

derivatives cin materials proteins and

most importantly it has been designed

and produced to replace the other

materials that have been used

traditionally like glass wood and

metals the Plastics are also used for

different purposes like for the

construction decoration for making many

articles such as coatings

filaments and for weaving

materials so if you go and look back at

the history of the Plastics we can trace

the origin of the plastic from the year

1846 in Europe where Charles schen

accidentally discovered the resin

nitrocellulose in 1851 hard rubber was

discovered in 1870 cam for was

discovered in 1890s formal deide was

used as a resin

199s synthetic bealite was discovered in

1930s different plastic polymers in the

form of nylon was discovered 1930s to

1940s during the World War II different

thermoplastics were discovered which are

still today used like PVC low density

polythylene

polyene

Etc also in 197

78 the very low density polyethene was

introduced which reduced the cost of the

plastic production industrially so as a

result of that Plastics have been used

for the production of different articles

slowly and gradually replacing the

traditional materials such as wood and

other construction

materials

so in

1937 Society of PL industry which has

been abbreviated as SPI they developed a

system which is known as the resin

identification code so this resin

identification code in 1988 depending

upon the types of the polymers or the

resins that have been used for the

production of

plastics they have recognized seven

categories so these categories include P

that is polyethylene

tetral sdp high density polyethylene

venile or PVC that is poly venile

chloride ldp that is low density

polyethylene PP that is

polypropylene PS polystyrene and other

mixed

Plastics so if you go through this resin

identification code so this has been

numbered like this 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 for the

different classes and you can see the

use of this plastic for different

applications for example the P or

polyethylene talet it has been used for

for making soft drink bottles and

different bottled waters high density

polyethylene they have been used for

making milk jugs laundry detergent

bottles and different cleaning solution

bottles poly chloride which is the most

importantly used plastic which is

abbreviated as PVC it has been used for

the plastic cing wrap and for the

plumbing pipings and all these things

and low density polyethylene for

shopping bags and squee bottles

polypropylene for plastic straw medicine

bottles condiment bottles polystyrene

for the clamshell packaging materials

plastic utensils CD cases and the other

mixed Plastics which includes the

acrylic nylon and polycarbonate type of

materials that has been used for making

different type of construction materials

and have different different varieties

of applications in every field

so in this slide you can see that

depending upon the time of their

decomposition so all the plastic types

they vary on the timing of the

decomposition for example you can see

that the poly venile choride which is

the least decomposed plastic so you can

see that there is no timeline for the

decomposition whereas the ldp type of

plastics they can take more or less 500

to th000 years for DEC composition also

the high density polyethylene they also

require a substantial amount of time

near about 100 years for the

decomposition so you can see that almost

all the

Plastics

are or they can persist in the

environment for a long period of time so

that make them a very dangerous material

from the point of view of the

environment so if you go through the

properties of the Plastics

we can say that the Plastics are

commercially used in the present day

because they are mostly

inexpensive on the other hand they are

very

durable and these

structures and their polymeric

properties they make them resistant to

all the natural processes of

degradation so that is why they are

completely

non-degradable and as a result of this

their higher prominence and usage in the

present day makes them accumulate in the

environment and which causes potential

hazards to the

environment so now let us focus on the

plastic pollution so basically the

plastic pollution is slowly and

gradually engulfing the Earth so in the

sense that it is highly toxic and it

affects all the organisms present in the

earth including the plants animals

insects and all the known living organ

orm it is an incredibly useful material

from our point of view but it is highly

toxic and it is known to cause

illness and because it is meant for

durability it is non-degradable in the

nature so which is the most con

important concern of the plastic

use so if you see the effect of the

plastic pollution on the environment we

can see plastic affects all the uh

ecosystems so first of all you can see

that the groundwater pollution is the

major cause of the plastic waste so this

plastic bottles and all these things

which get accumulated in the Aquatic

environment it slowly and gradually gets

accumulated in the surface water and

slowly it becomes leashed out to the

groundw and it begins to cause serious

harm to the

species which live in the water and

which are dependent upon the Water for

their drinking

then the Plastics if they get

accumulated in the land it causes the

land pollution and it has been known

that overall 46% of the plastic waste is

landfilled unlike the Other M materials

you know that the plastic is non

degradable so that is why it slowly and

gradually gets accumulated in the

terrestrial

environment also

Plastics they cannot be burnt because

burning of the plastic leads to air

pollution

the burning of the plastic releases

highly toxic gases and elements and

products which are mostly carbon

monoxide chlorine hypochloric acid

dioxine furons amines styrene benzine

and acid alide all these compounds are

highly toxic and causes air

pollution again the most important

dangerous aspect of the plastic

pollution is AC of the plastic

ultimately into ultimately into the

oceans because the ocean is at the down

strep of each and every

ecosystem mostly all the Plastics gets

accumulated and end up in the

ocean it has been estimated that nearly

4.8 million and 12.7 million tons of

debris end up in the Wall's ocean every

year and majority of it is improperly

discarded plastic liter

so in totality we can see that the

plastic plastic pollution it upsets the

food chain so you can see in this figure

that the Plastics it affects not only

the phytoplankton which are the

producers it also affects the primary

consumers and the secondary consumers

and ultimately

affecting the humans which are at the

top of the food chain so that is why

Plastics are highly toxic and their

biomagnification and accumulation in the

the T consumers poses a serious threat

and

concern so now let us focus on some of

the aspects of the management of plastic

WS so the conventional methods of

management of the plastic waste it

involves the recycling of the plastic so

the plastic recycling basically refers

to the process of recovering waste or

scrap plastic and reprocessing it into

useful products so this recycling

process it involves first of all the

collection of the

plastic then the Sorting of the plastic

so that means separating the different

type of

plastics then shredding of the Plastics

through the shredder machine and

different machines after that de

cleaning of the Plastics and melting the

Plastics to finally making it pellet so

that they can be recycled and reused for

uh for the

use another conventional method includes

The Dumping of the pl itic waste into

the landfill so this is a conventional

approach of the waste

management but the major disadvantages

of this land filling is that uh

gradually in every country the space for

landfilling is becoming

scanty however this plastic waste also

remains in the landfill without breaking

down and changing the composition of the

terrestrial environment and the

surrounding aquatic environments also

due to the leeching of the plastic

waste another conventional method is the

incineration so basically incineration

means to burn the plastic at high

temperature so insulation process

basically it aims to reduce the need for

the landfill of the plastic W however

there are the major concerns that

whenever the Plastics are burned

hazardous substances or chemicals are

released into the environment

however insulation can be used to

recover some of the energy content in

the plastic so that means some of the

Plastics can be recycled through this

process so how can we manage the plastic

waste from our

s so we all of us can do a uh bit from

our own by reducing the use of the

single use Plastics so basically single

use Plastics refer to the plastic that

are used only once it may be for any

purpose that means like a carry bag uh

like a cuty like a packaging material so

you can see the all the examples of the

single use items or the single use

Plastics including the plastic carry

bags sticks then straws then food

packaging material or the plastic

utensils you can see that you can

replace all this item with different

alternatives for example you can use the

plastic bags or the different bags which

can be reused again and again instead of

the carry bag you can use the steel cut

we can as the tiffen Box instead of the

plastic your containers so like this we

can replace the uh usage of the single

use Plastics

so as you know that the there are three

hours for the management of the West

that is Reduce Reuse and recycle that

means all of us should work toward

reducing the usage of the

plastic reuse of the plastic materials

and recycling of the plastic materials

so like this we can all work towards the

goal of managing the plastic fist so in

this example you can also see a road

that is made from the West plastic so

this road is from your from our own

country where the plastic waste has been

used for uh preparing the road like this

so you can see that there can be

different ways by which you can utilize

the plastic so that it does not get

causes the potential hazards when they

gets landfilled or when they are leased

out into the aquaticos

system lastly in conclusion so we can

say that we have to rise above the

plastic and there are many statistical

implications as you can see that near

about 180 million plastic blacks 120

million plastic bottles 200 million

other pieces of plastic packaging they

are released into the environment M

every year 9 million tons of plastic

enter into the ecosystem and every 11

years this is going to

double and the most important thing is

that plastic doesn't decompose it just

gets

smaller just from a single bottle near

about 10,000 pieces of microplastics can

be released into the

environment so in our bit to manage or

cup the plastic pollution we can follow

some of the basic steps that means we

can introduce a container deposit system

to eliminate the plastic rubbish we can

ban the single use plastic bags we can

remove the microb Beats from the

personal care and laundry products we

can ensure plastic producers and

recyclers

capture all the plastic wees from our

own

premise

finally thank you for your patient

hearing and let us do our bit and don't

don't let the world to go to the West

just like a plastic thank you all of you

once again

[Music]